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Achingly beautiful to look at and composed as a fable of arguably divinely inspired creativity, the impressionistic story of early-20th-century Modern Primitive painter Séraphine de Senlis immediately ascends to the first rank of artists biopics. French character Yolande Moreau (The Last Mistress, Amélie) brilliantly portrays Séraphine as a devout, simple soul who scurries about gathering natural materials in the forest for her paints while working as a domestic for her meager living  until shes discovered by art dealer Wilhelm Uhde (Ulrich Tukur), who sees the genius in her glorious still lifes, bursting with energy and vibrant color. Director Martin Provost, who wrote the screenplay with Marc Abdelnour, depicts the painter as part ecstatic religious mystic, part child of nature. Highly recommended, especially for visual arts enthusiasts (125 min.).
ByKelly Vance